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As the first semester draws to a close, McLean seniors are juggling fading academic motivation with the knowledge that their latest grades could influence college admissions decisions.
The familiar slump known as “senioritis” has made that pressure harder to manage for some students.
“I’ve had senioritis since last year,” senior Kyle Li said. “It does contribute to my stress because I hate doing school assignments because they are busy but unstimulating.”
Colleges receive midyear reports containing first- and second-quarter grades from applicants and admitted students. That means seniors must sustain their academic performance through the end of January while finishing applications and waiting for decisions.
“I have felt a tremendous amount of stress,” senior Brianna Barahona said. “It is stressful just knowing that this would be colleges’ last look into my grades before they actually make my acceptance decision.”
For some students, the uncertainty of admissions is even more stressful than schoolwork. Li said he sometimes thinks of ways he could have improved his supplemental essays after submitting them.
“I am more stressed about waiting for decisions to come out than actual schoolwork,” Li said. “Sometimes I’ll think of ideas or sentences that would have made my supplements stronger, but there’s nothing I can do about it now. I guess I’m stressed about things out of my control, so I really shouldn’t be.”
Teachers recognize that college decisions often arrive alongside major assignments and assessments. Some are responding with additional reminders, flexibility and workload guidance.
Math teacher Evan Brandt said he conducts more deliberate check-ins near the end of the semester so seniors know about missing work when their grades carry particular importance.
“I also try to end the second quarter a week and a half before the actual end of the second quarter, so that way everything can get in on time without seniors having to stress that I’m not going to get the grades posted in time for them to send to colleges,” Brandt said.
Despite the difficult finish to the semester, seniors expect some of the pressure to ease once the second quarter ends and admissions results begin arriving.
“I believe I will be less stressed,” Barahona said. “I feel like, by then, I’m going to have heard back from colleges, and hopefully I will have gotten into my dream school.”
With applications largely behind them, students are also looking forward to enjoying their final months of high school.
“After college apps are basically over, I feel free,” Li said. “I feel like I can pursue what I truly want to do without feeling like every action is towards a resume.”
Li also hopes to reconnect with longtime friends after years of increasingly busy schedules.
“Hopefully we will all have more time to enjoy life a little more now,” he said.